{"id":63035,"date":"2019-06-19T19:06:52","date_gmt":"2019-06-20T02:06:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/?p=63035"},"modified":"2020-04-24T17:12:32","modified_gmt":"2020-04-25T00:12:32","slug":"ashevilles-best-mountain-biking-isnt-where-you-might-think","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/cycle\/ashevilles-best-mountain-biking-isnt-where-you-might-think","title":{"rendered":"Asheville’s Best Mountain Biking Isn’t Where You Might Think"},"content":{"rendered":"

Asheville\u2019s best flow trail is hidden under three feet of tall grass and briars. That\u2019s what I decide as I ride <\/span>Alexander Mountain Bike Park<\/span>, pedaling through patches of thick brush that lead to a few hundred yards of butter-smooth trail before succumbing to more grass and thorns. It\u2019s frustrating, slow-paced riding because of the conditions, but I can tell that there\u2019s gold beneath all this overgrowth. Alexander\u2019s trail system was built almost two decades ago, before \u201cflow trails\u201d became buzz words in the mountain bike world, but Alexander\u2019s trails were built with flow in mind, using the contours of the ridgeline to create a sweeping, roller-coaster ride unlike anything else near Asheville.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s so much fun, but nobody comes up here to ride it,\u201d says Jeff Keener, the former president of the Pisgah Area SORBA<\/a> (Southern Off Road Bicycle Association). It\u2019s curious that Alexander receives almost no attention, but the truth is, most mountain bikers are so enamored with the 20 miles of singletrack at <\/span>Bent Creek Experimental Forest<\/span>, on the west side of town, that they never bother exploring the area\u2019s other trail systems.<\/span><\/p>\n

Alexander\u2019s singletrack winds through a stand of woods between the French Broad River and the Buncombe County Landfill. Keener spearheaded two work days on Alexander over the winter to whip the system into shape and hopefully lure bikers to check it out. But judging by the overgrown nature of the trails in early June, I\u2019d say not many bikers have pedaled Alexander recently.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt was riding beautifully earlier this year,\u201d Keener says. \u201cSome really fast, twisty sections, but it\u2019s going to be hard to maintain it if nobody rides it.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

That\u2019s the great irony of Asheville\u2019s mountain biking scene: while some areas like Bent Creek get \u201cloved to death,\u201d other systems go almost completely unridden. The trail work at Alexander is part of SORBA\u2019s larger effort to develop and maintain trails closer to Asheville and relieve some of the user pressure on Bent Creek, which is one of the most popular trail systems in Western North Carolina, according to Keener. <\/span><\/p>\n

And Alexander isn’t the only hidden gem nearby. There are a handful of trail systems surrounding Asheville that offer high-quality mountain biking without the crowds. Here are four trail systems worth checking out.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"A

The author charts a course through Alexander Mountain Bike Park’s thick greenery. (Photo Courtesy: Graham Averill)<\/p><\/div>\n

Richmond Hill City Park<\/b><\/a><\/h3>\n